The Southpaw

"King of the Hill" -- classic documentary about Ferguson Jenkins and the 1972 Cubs

This is a classic documentary, hard to find for a long time but now available on a few Web sites -- almost always for a fee. The focus is on Ferguson Jenkins and the Cubs during the 1972 and 1973 seasons, and because the Cubs were just decent (1972) and then poor (1973), you get to hear some of the things that go unsaid in the celebratory documentaries that focus on championship teams. You hear about how much the players hated their manager, Leo Durocher, and how, after he was fired in mid-1972, "The Cubs were, once again, a happy ball team." You also get the details on how this bad blood played out: "Ron Santo had been so enraged one day, he jumped on Durocher and nearly strangled him." There are great snippets of dialogue on the field, in the dugout, and in the training room; brief but nifty footage of players like Billy Williams, Ron Santo, Joe Pepitone (with monster sideburns), and Randy Hundley; and a nice little summary of third base coach Pete Reiser's notorious career ("He was carried off the field unconscious 11 times ..."). And of course, there's Fergie Jenkins. We're told, early on, that he'll be expected to start 40 games, and would be paid $3,000 for each one. We get to see his beautiful, compact delivery over and over again. We see him lionized when he's pitching well, and booed when he's pitching poorly. And finally, we're told that after the 1973 season he got his wish, and was traded to the Texas Rangers. "King of the Hill" is just short of an hour long, but in my opinion, if you're a baseball fan you'll find it well worth your time.

David Halberstam, RIP

David Halberstam, the great Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter who first made his mark with extraordinary, prescient reporting on the Vietnam War, was killed yesterday in a car crash. He was 73.

When Halberstam, whose output was prolific, wasn't writing books about the history of the Vietnam War (The Best and the Brightest), the titans of the mass media (The Powers that Be), shifts in U.S. foreign policy since the Gulf War (War in a Time of Peace), and other weighty topics, he wrote books about sports. The Breaks of the Game, about the 1979 Trail Blazers, is a terrific read and a basketball classic. Personally, I most enjoyed that book and The Amateurs, about amateur rowers at the Olympic level. The Amateurs doesn't get enough props when the greatest sports books are discussed.

I was never enthralled with his baseball writing, however. Summer of '49 and October 1964 failed to hook me in the way his other works, both sports and non-sports, had. That's okay -- I know plenty of people who've enjoyed those books, and his others on baseball.

For a few years, I had the honor of occupying the same virtual space as Halberstam, on ESPN.com's Page 2. I never fooled myself into thinking it put me in his league, but I still felt good about it. He was journalism royalty, after all.

The New York Times has dug up a slew of material from its archives to give Halberstam a fitting sendoff; the ones I've linked to below are baseball-related, and most, but not all, are book reviews:

July 8, 1993: At the Ball Park With: David Halberstam; Making Legwork (and Edginess) a Virtue

May 25, 2003: The Boys of Winter (book review)

May 8, 1989: Yanks vs. Sox in 'Summer of '49' (book review)

Aug. 14, 1994: Damned Yankees (book review)

And finally, a 2002 Boston Globe article by Halberstam about a day he spent with Ted Williams: Day Spent with One of the Greats

1960 World Series Video: Pirates top Yanks in a Thriller

In this great seven-game series, the Yankees outscored the Pirates, 55-27. Unfortunately for the Bombers, composite scores don't count, and the Pirates won when Bill Mazeroski hit the game-winning homer off Ralph Terry in the ninth inning of Game 7, breaking a 9-9 deadlock. New York's Bobby Richardson was named World Series MVP, the first time a member of the losing team received that honor.

Chuck Thompson was calling that game on the radio, and he choked in classic fashion, getting both names and the score wrong:

Well, a little while ago, when we said that this one, uh, in typical fashion, was going right down to the wire, little did we know! ... Art Ditmar throws ... There's a swing and a high fly ball going deep to left, this may do it! ... Back to the wall goes Berra, it is ... over the fence, home run, the Pirates win! ... (long pause for crowd noise) ... Ladies and gentleman, Bill Mazeroski has just hit a one-nothing pitch over the left field wall to win the 1960 World Series for the Pittsburgh Pirates by a score of ten to nothing! ... Once again, that final score, the World Champion Pittsburgh Pirates TEN, and the New York Yankees NINE!

Yogi Berra had a terse, but accurate, assessment of why the Yankees lost: "We made too many wrong mistakes."

This video, in color, covers all seven games in detail. It's hard to ignore the generic bat-hits-ball sound (a bunt gets the same "thwack!" as a 450-foot homer), but it's great to see Vern Law and Elroy Face and Dick Groat and Roberto Clemente and Harvey Haddix and Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle and Yogi Berra and Ralph Terry and, of course, old Casey Stengel in action.

Video: Alan Schwarz interviews Silas Simmons, "Oldest Old-Timer"

Back in Sept. 2006, Alan Schwarz of the New York Times profiled Silas Simmons, a former Negro League pitcher who had recently been "discovered." He would soon turn 111, and talked to Schwarz about what it was like playing against stars such as Pop Lloyd, Judy Johnson and Biz Mackey, who he faced in a career that spanned the years from 1912 to 1929.

Simmons died not long after the interview.

Schwarz's profile is brief, but quite good. Even better is the video of his interview with Simmons, which Schwarz was generous enough to post online.

Condolences to John Rocker

John Rocker's father, Jake, was killed Tuesday in a car accident. He was 63.

I'm very sad about this. I know that John was close to his father. I know that 63 is way too young for anyone to go, these days. And, having lost my father at 22, I can imagine that it's not much easier at 32. Rocker is still young.

Much of my sadness must come from the illusion that I "know" John. I interviewed him for about a half-hour last summer, and it was one of the most pleasant, interesting, and insightful interviews I've ever had. We were talking about Leo Mazzone, but so much more came across about John. He was generous in his praise for many people, including Leo. He keeps up friendships with old teammates and coaches, even though he's out of the game. He displayed no bitterness. He was smart, and he was gracious, and he was patient when I stumbled on the occasional question, searching for the right words.

John Rocker has a reputation that he'll probably never live down. He did and said some things he shouldn't have done or said. But that was a while ago, and those incidents certainly don't define the man. I don't agree with some of the political opinions he expresses these days, but that's okay. I think his heart is in the right place.

John Rocker and his family are in my thoughts today.

The 1954 World Series: Giants Sweep Indians; Mays' Amazing Catch

Below is a newsreel roundup of the 1954 World Series, in which the Giants, led by pinch-hitter par excellence Dusty Rhodes and steady veteran outfielder Don Mueller, swept the mighty Cleveland Indians, winners of a record-setting 111 games during the regular season. Except for Vic Wertz, who was robbed by Mays with that spectacular grab in the eighth inning of Game 1, none of the Indians could touch the Giants pitchers; the Indians batted .190 in the short series. They had punched out a .262 average during the regular season.

You can also listen to all of Game 1, thanks to the folks at the Internet Archives.

Casey At The Bat: The Cartoon

From 1954, a classic (and well-preserved) animated version of "Casey at the Bat," by Jerry Colonna. Well done.

Long 1952 World Series Video: Robinson, Mantle, Snider, Reese, Berra

Here's a rare treat: a full-length (31 minutes) recap of the 1952 World Series, in which the Yankees beat the Dodgers in seven games, thanks in large part to Billy Martin's game-saving catch in the final matchup. This was the Yankees fourth straight World Series title. Seeing all of these greats and Hall of Famers playing in one series is terrific; my favorite part, though, is watching Mickey Mantle run at full speed, before his legs went out. Man, he was fast.

Pete Rose Then ... and Now

By 1976, Pete Rose had gone beyond baseball superstardom and become a true celebrity, a household name. Of course (who could blame him?) he tried to cash in. What kind of man was he? Watch and find out (NSBL) (Not Safe Before Lunch).

Here's the same man, nearly 30 years later, at the height of his infamy. Of course, he's trying to cash in. In this snippet a few folks are actually approaching Rose. My sister said she saw him in Vegas recently, same gig, trying to shill his signature, and nobody came near him for a long time. Sounds like one of those sad old boxers, except Rose hasn't suffered multiple concussions and exploitative managers.

Opening Day for the Peanuts Gang

A rain delay, and the team tries to get its signals in order. Click on the panel below for a larger version.